The present invention relates to a vacuum discharge fluid recirculation system for dental cuspidors.
The present system comprises an improvement upon prior developments, such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,842,448 to Kahn et al.
It is well known that the operation of a dentist's office can involve the use of great quantities of water. If only fresh water is used, the dentist can, therefore, experience very large costs for water supply.
The demand for water in a dentist's office primarily is a result of the use of dental cuspidors, both fixed and hand held. In these familiar devices, flushing water is introduced under pressure and is designed to carry away the substances, both fluid and particulate, discharged by the patient.
As indicated in the Kahn Patent, it has previously been realized that savings can be achieved if the discharge water from cuspidors is recycled. In the Kahn Patent, it is contemplated that the discharged fluid shall be directed back into the cuspidor, after filtration to remove the particulate matter and offensive odor. Such a system creates the need for a relatively high degree of treatment, not only in terms of particle removal, but also for purposes of deodorization. It is usually also necessary to render the discharge fluid colorless prior to reintroducing the same into the cuspidor.
The present system is a departure from the above described techniques. In the present system, only fresh water is used for the purpose of flushing the cuspidor. The cuspidors, which preferably are of the demand type, i.e., which are operable so as to require fresh water only when demanded by the patient and/or the dentist, discharge into a suction evacuation system.
The evacuation system includes a vacuum pump which creates suction to assist in the discharge from the cuspidor. In the present system the discharged water is filtered but, in contrast to prior systems, is not passed back into the cuspidor. Instead, the discharged water is utilized to keep the vacuum pump primed. Accordingly, it is not necessary, with the present system to reach the same high level of particulate filtration, odor removal and de-colorization as is required in prior systems in which the discharge fluid is recirculated back into the cuspidors themselves. The elimination of the aforesaid requirements makes it possible to utilize a simpler, less costly system without substantially increasing the amount of fresh water used.
The above advantages and others will be appreciated from the following detailed description and claims and from the drawing.